Canada

The Capilano Suspension Bridge Park is found in Vancouver, BC. This park was really fun, but man was it crowded. We went on a Wednesday morning; I can’t even imagine how packed it would be on a weekend. The park has fun play structures for kids, live animal shows, some fish ponds, and of course, lots of suspended bridges.

Just after entering the park you will cross the longest of Capilano’s suspension bridges. This particular bridge is so twisty it is hard to walk without holding the railing. It spans a large canyon with a small river at the bottom. It’s a beautiful view and fun to feel yourself get thrown around as all the other people contribute to the bridge rocking.

There is a whole ewok village bridge system in the “treetop adventure” portion of the park. There are 7 of these bridges all connected by eagle’s nest structures around giant Douglas Fir trees. I suggest you make your way along the treetop adventure when there is a lull in traffic.

The other really cool bridge at the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park is the Cliffwalk bridge. This semi-circle shaped bridge juts out from the side of a cliff. This bridge doesn’t sway at all, but is still a little nerve racking with how high above the canyon floor you are. There are a few spots along this walk that have plexiglass floors so you can really feel that vertigo feeling from the height.

While visiting Vancouver you may also want to take the Sea To Sky Highway which runs from Vancouver to Whistler. This is a gorgeous drive with great viewpoints. It’s really neat because the road is built right into the side of a cliff. It looks like you are driving in a Mazda commercial, “zoom zoom,” winding and hugging the cliff on the edge of the ocean.

Driving from E.C. Manning to Vancouver takes you through the little town of Hope. Hope has a special place in my heart after our weekend there. The community is friendly, the camping spots are beautiful, and there are some sweet Othello Tunnels to visit for sightseeing. Make sure you visit in the summer so you can enjoy a concert in the park as well.

This is the view from our camping spot in Hope. We were right on the river (nearly all spots are right on the river). Loved this area!

These are my cute boys sitting enjoying the view as the sun gets ready to set. Ignore the super messy trailer in the background. I’d like to say that is not normally how it looks, but that is almost always how it looks. Pretty sad for the organizing queen…sigh.

This halfway eccentric photo of us with the Vancouver band, ‘The Pretties” is how Hope won my heart. All summer long Hope hosts “Concerts In The Park” on both Saturday and Sunday. We came through Hope in August and caught the very last concert in the park. The Pretties were great, sort of punk rock style. They even welcomed a photo with us to document Seth’s first concert. We then entered this photo in the “Hope Concerts In The Park Photo Contest”, and because of little baby Seth and the tie-dye shirt, we took 2nd place!

Now for those Othello Tunnels.

Othello Tunnels

These easy to access tunnels run through a canyon, on the side of a gorgeous blue green river, and were a crazy feat to create since they are carved into sheer cliff faces. There are 4 tunnels in all. 3 are connected with bridges.

It’s really cool to stand in front of one tunnel and look through to the next. 2 of the Othello Tunnels are so long you can’t easily see out the other side. You may even want to bring a flashlight for the longest tunnel. We used our phones for light.

We crossed the border into Canada in Osoyoos. From there we stopped at a couple Provincial Park that did not disappoint.

Haynes Point Provincial Park

This cute little Provincial Park is located almost entirely on a narrow piece of land that extends out into the middle of Osoyoos Lake. If you go out to the point, you get a good view of the lake in both directions. Seth and I wandered out to the point just so that Seth could sit ‘in the middle’ of the lake.

Spotted Lake

Not a Provincial Park, but a weird lake. Spotted Lake is a saline endorheic alkali lake (yes I had to look that up) and contains dense deposits of magnesium sulfate, calcium and sodium sulfates. Each season the lake changes color depending on which mineral is most prevalent (pink, blue/green, white, etc). The lake also appears to have spots. The lake is so shallow that the water evaporates easily leaving dense areas of minerals and less dense areas which create the spots.

E. C. Manning Provincial Park

Great park to have lunch in, just watch out for bears. Luckily we didn’t see any while we ate, but we were warned by rangers that bear sightings are very normal in this park.

Hedley Heritage Museum

Hedley was a mining town and you can still see much of the old mine machinery and entrances up on the sides of the mountain. We went to the Hedley Heritage Museum with Seth and had some fun getting our hands on vintage mining equipment.

Linda couldn’t return to the US without visiting Waterton Parks Canada, which is just above Glacier National Park on the Canadian side. As it turns out, 2016 is not the year to visit Waterton Parks Canada. Over half of the park was closed for construction. We did see all three portions of the park that were open, the Prince’s Hotel, Cameron Falls and Red Rock Canyon (although even much of the hiking around Red Rock Canyon was closed).

Apparently the thing to do at Red Rock Canyon is swim. So we got down into the canyon, I took Seth’s socks off, and we let him dip his toes in. The second they touched that chilly water Seth’s knees tucked and the toes were out. Even though we didn’t swim, the canyon was pretty.

Crossing The Border Back To The USA

When you cross the border from the USA into Canada, you are asked if you have any firearms, where you are going, how long you’ll be, etc. Easy-peasy. When you come back into the states from Canada, you are asked “How long will you be here?” which seems weird…I live here…um… “forever” Bade answered. You are also asked if you have any fresh produce. You are not allowed to bring ANY produce into the USA from Canada. Good thing there was a line to get back into the US, so we had time to eat as much of our fresh stuff as possible.

First things first, GO EARLY. These lakes are crazy busy. It took us 2 days to see Moraine Lake. When it is that packed, they won’t even let cars drive the road towards the lake (this is a daily occurrence from around 10 AM until 4 PM.

Second, these lakes are SO pretty. My impressions of the two lakes were that Moraine Lake was bigger, and more impressive because of its size and the diversity of its shores (trees, a waterfall, a glacier, a mountain, and a log jam). Lake Louise was smaller (probably deeper since it seemed a darker blue) but in a more picturesque setting sitting between 2 large mountain peaks with a glacier right in the middle.

Lake Louise

If you don’t canoe Lake Louise, then all there is to do is see the lake, take some photos, and you are done. It is an easily accessible lake since it is close to the town of Lake Louise.

Moraine Lake

There is more to do around Moraine Lake. There is a gift shop, restaurant, and a hike that goes most the way around the lake. We rented a canoe at Moraine Lake.

As we were getting into the canoe they were telling us about safety and the relay system if anyone on the lake flips. They then causally mentioned that the temperature of the lake is 34 degrees Fahrenheit to really solidify the fact that I did NOT want to flip.

I would definitely recommend splurging and canoeing one of these two lakes. The water is blue from the shores, but it seemed so much more blue when you were out in the middle. It was especially blue when the sun would peek out and light up the water.

Seth did not love canoeing probably because the life jacket was squeezing his cheeks. He spent the first half the canoeing time in the boat with us, either sucking on a Binky or enjoying a bottle. He spent the rest of the time walking around the lake with grandpa while Bade and I went out by ourselves.

Kootenay was another park that we didn’t fully explore, just touched into, but I am so glad we did. The two cool features of Kootenay that we saw were the paint pots and Marble Canyon and both were awesome.

Marble Canyon

This impressive canyon was like Mistaya Canyon in that is was a slot with bright blue water and deep canyon walls, but was more awesome than Mistaya Canyon because there were bridges that jumped back and forth across the sides of this canyon all the way to the top.

The top of the hike rewarded us with a large waterfall pouring into the top of the canyon, as well as these red Adirondack chairs.

Kootenay Indian Paint Pots

If you just look at the paint pots as something in nature, you may think the hike was a waste. They are gross algae filled cesspools surrounded by mud. But, if you look at these paint pots as places where natives used to harvest okra to dry, then use for painting skin, teepees, and more, you might feel the need to test out your skills at okra painting.

Just North of Lake Louise you will come to a long stretch of highway, the Icefields Parkway, that goes right down the middle of two mountain ranges. This almost 300 mile stretch to Jasper is spectacular. We only did half of the Icefields Parkway, ending at the Columbia Icefield. I am told that this half is the better half; I feel satisfied in what we did. Here are some of the highlights of this day of driving on the Icefields Parkway.

Glaciers & Blue Lakes

Nearly every pull out has a glacier or a blue lake, or both.

Peyto Lake

The prettiest and bluest lake was Peyto Lake. We especially liked how still the water was so you could see the reflection of the mountains clearly.

Mistaya Canyon

Mistaya Canyon was a deep slot with bright blue water crashing through it. Those cliffs are tall and steep, and we could walk right up to the edge. It was scary getting close. The water was rushing so fast you would get a little dizzy as you looked down.

Columbia Icefield

There was a fun field of cairns in front of the Columbia Icefield. You can also take a snow bus right out onto the icefield. But be careful, creepy looking children are likely to fall in the cracks…

Driving the Icefields Parkway

The drive was long but continuously pretty; it may have been too long (or too pretty) for some.

And when you get in and out of the car so much, you constantly rearrange, get new stuff out, etc, and your car becomes a bit of a mess. On a related note, thanks Doug and Linda for taking us on this road with you in your van. Sorry for the mess.

Yoho Parks Canada

Yoho Park was on our ‘want to do’ list, but didn’t fit into our schedule. However, we did manage to hop into Yoho for a small peak at Takakkaw Falls, which is in Yoho, just on the border of Banff. I’m so glad we made this stop.

The photo below is not edited, but the rocks look outlined. It’s because they are wet on the far side. The mist from these giant falls is so great that those rocks are soaked and they are a ways away. If you look close you might be able to see little people on the rocks below the falls.

One hike we did between Banff and Lake Louise is Lower Johnston Canyon Falls, Banff Parks Canada. This is an easy hike along the river in Johnston Canyon. The best part about this hike is that it is full of catwalks hugging the canyon walls.

When you arrive at the Lower Johnston Canyon Falls you can cross a bridge, and go inside a little cave tunnel to get an up close view of the falls.

This was such a pleasant hike. Next time I am in Banff I want to continue onto the upper Johnston Canyon Falls since they are much taller. Johnston Canyon has 12 falls throughout but only 2 are large-ish.

We crossed the border into Canada and made it to Banff. Sadly, making it to Banff also included one tragic loss. A bird flew directly into our windshield. Bade and I were both stunned. Don’t they always get out of the way last minute? Apparently not. This one hit our windshield, and remained on our hood for around 160 kilometers (we’re in Canada now). Despite the bird mishap, we made it to Banff; the most beautiful place Bade or I have ever been.

We had some time that first afternoon to take in the sites, so we checked out Bow River Falls. Really pretty falls just below the castle (hotel) in Banff.

The next evening we stopped in for a dip at Banff Upper Hot Springs. It was a long day of driving and sightseeing (more on that tomorrow) so it was really nice to be in some hot water and relax. However, visiting Banff again I probably wouldn’t do these hot springs. It is a single pool and it was PACKED with people. For us, it was standing room only for most the time we were there. It felt awkward at times with people sitting around the edges just watching those of us stuck in the middle. Good thing little ice-breaker Seth was there to ease the discomfort. Everyone liked how smiley and giggly he was, especially when we would toss him into the air above the pool.